Shaft thimble and strap for racing harness



May 27, 1969 3,445,989

SHAFT THIMBLE AND STRAP FOR RACING HARNESS V W. C. BEACH Filed Dec. 20, 1966 FIG.4

INVENTOR WILLARD C. BEACH FIG.8

ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,445,989 SHAFT THIMBLE AND STRAP FOR RACING HARNESS Willard C. Beach, RD. 1, Glen Rock, Pa. 17327; National Bank and Trust Company of Central Pennsylvania, administrator of Mary B. Beach and said Willard C. Beach, deceased Filed Dec. 20, 1966, Ser. No. 603,363

Int. Cl. B68b 5/06 US. Cl. 54-2 11 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A thimble structure to receive the tapered outer end of the shaft of a racing sulky or jog cart and having a strap extending rearwardly from the thimble for connection to the saddle of a set of racing harness.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS The shaft thimble and strap may be used with a set of harness of the type illustrated in application, Ser. No. 557,546, filed June 14, 1966, in which conventional thimble 26 is illustrated, the strap structure attached to and from which the thimble of the present invention is formed is made similarly to the strap structures illustrated in said pending application.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Shaft thimbles and straps therefor conventionally are included in sets of racing harness for reception of the outer ends of the shafts of racing sulkies, jog carts and the like, primarily to facilitate backing of the same when such movement is desired. Conventional shaft thimbles have been formed for many years from standard saddle leather by stitching the same into a closed elongated cuplike socket arrangement and are connected to a leather strap extending rearward from the open end of said socket. Shaft thimbles and straps of conventional type which are formed from leather are subject to deterioration from sweat and inclement weather. Particularly when used on muddy tracks, the sockets not infrequently become caked with mud and partially filled therewith. Cleaning of the same is tedious. Further, such shaft thimbles formed from leather are of fixed size and at least after certain periods of use become enlarged and stretched and are no longer capable of frictionally engaging the outer ends of shafts of racing sulkies and jog carts, assuming that they were of such size as to frictionally engage such shaft ends when the thimbles were new.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The shaft thimbles and straps connected thereto which embody the principles of the present invention are formed preferably from a predetermined length of strap of substantially uniform width and thickness comprising a strip of textile fabric folded over a plurality of times upon itself to provide a plurality of adjacent, overlying plies and also disposing the cut edges of the strip of fabric innermost, whereby the completed strap has rounded opposite edges and all the plies are secured effectively into a unitary structure by an appropriate number of parallel rows of stitches extending longitudinally of the strap.

One end of the strap is shaped into a looped arrangement, preferably comprising a pair of connected loops disposed generally in an 8-shaped configuration and the terminal extremity of said one' end of the strap is disposed substantially at a right angle to a portion of the strap immediately adjacent the end of the thimble formed by said plurality of loops, thereby to dispose the axis of the thimble at an obtuse angle to the longitudinal axis of the strap connected thereto. The opposite end of the strap is adjustably connectable to the saddle of a set of racing harness. Such obtuse angle disposes the socket in an operative position with respect to the axis of the strap when such assembly is in normal use.

The outermost loop of said pair of loops preferably is somewhat smaller in circumference than the other loop so as to readily receive and be complementary to the tapered outer end of a shaft of a sulky or cart. Further, and very importantly, the loops respectively are disposed within planes extending in opposite directions at similar acute angles to the plane within which the strap normally is disposed when in use, whereby when the strap is subjected to tension such as during the backing operation of a sulky or cart, the loops are subjected to somewhat of a stretching operation which tends to extend the angle between the planes thereof and thereby increases the frictional engagement of said loops with the end of a shaft. The open nature of said loops also prevents the retention of mud and facilitates the cleaning thereof when subjected to being spattered by mud during use.

Still further in accordance with the principles of the present invention, the strap structure embodied in the shaft thimble and strap connected thereto, preferably is formed from a strip of textile fabric woven from thermoplastic filaments of a suitable type of synthetic resin of which a number are available at present under various names, one very well known one of which is nylon. A strap formed from such folded type of textile fabric and stitched longitudinally is capable of sustaining a far greater tensile stress in comparison with comparable sizes of leather strap material, while being only a small fraction of the weight of comparable leather strap material.

Further, the thermoplastic nature of the material lends itself readily to forming in the end of the strap which is connectable to the saddle of a set of harness a series of spaced holes by means of a heated, pointed instrument which fuses its way through the multi-ply thermoplastic strap and connects the ends of any severed filaments together so as to prevent raveling thereof and also to stabilize the shape of the hole and, at least from the standpoint of shape retention, serves substantially as a metallic grommet. However, it is more effective than a metallic grommet in that the fused wall of the hole is integral with the material in which the hole is formed.

Still another advantage of the present invention comprises the fact that the frictional manner in which the looped thimble engages the outer end of a shaft enables the thimble portion of the thimble and strap assembly to be twisted about the axis of the outer end of the shaft so as to spirally dispose a portion of the connecting strap around the shaft between the thimble and the saddle so as to provide a ready, effective and quick means of taking up slack in the strap such, for example, as when changing from use with a jog cart, with which a long strap is preferred, to use 'with a sulky, wherein a relatively short strap is preferred. In addition, spirally wrapping said portion of the connecting strap around the shaft further increases the frictional engagement of the strap and thimble with the shaft.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is a side elevation of a fragmentarily illustrated forward, upper quarter of a race horse upon which a set of racing harness is mounted, including a shaft thimble and strap embodying the principles of the present invention, the same being illustrated in engagement with the fragmentary outer end portion of the shaft of a racing sulky or jog cart.

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary top plan view of the forward quarter of a horse and showing the preferred manner of connecting the thimble and straps of the invention to a saddle of a set of harness and also illustrating the righthand and left-hand nature of a pair of shaft thimbles and straps connected thereto, as contemplated by the present invention.

FIGS. 3 and 4 respectively are fragmentary top plan views of right-hand and left-hand shaft thimbles shown on a larger scale than in FIGS. 1 and 2 and embodying the principles of the present invention and further showing the preferred manner of engagement thereof with the fragmentarily illustrated outer ends of a pair of shafts of a sulk or cart.

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary, exemplary side elevation of the end of the shaft and shaft socket illustrated in FIG. 4 to show the obtuse angle arrangement between the axis of the shaft thimble and the strap connected thereto.

FIG. 6 is a side elevation of the shaft thimble as illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5 when said thimble is not connected to the shaft.

FIG. 7 is an exemplary top plan view of a left-hand shaft, such as fragmentarily illustrated in FIG. 4, but showing a greater length of the shaft and the strap connected to the thimble being spirally wrapped around the shaft to shorten the length thereof as when the thimble is to be used on a racing sulky.

FIG. 8 is a somewhat expanded and diagrammatic exemplary cross-sectional view of a typical pattern of folded textile fabric arranged to form a strap from which the shaft thimble and connecting strap integral therewith is formed in accordance with the principles of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION FIG. 1 of the drawing illustrates the principal elements normally included in a set of harness made in accordance with the principles of the invention, such as covered by applicants prior patent, No. 3,270,488 and pending application, Ser. No. 557,546, which comprises a continuation-in-part of said patent. For details of the various elements shown in FIG. 1, certain of which are only illustrated fragmentarily, and many of which are not essential to the present invention, attention is directed to said prior patent and pending application. For purposes of illustrating the present invention however, it is sufficient to indicate that, included in the set of harness is a saddle 10 which preferably is made in accordance with the saddle comprising the subject matter of said prior patent.

The saddle 10 extends around the girth of the horse 12. The forward fragmentary end of a shaft 14 also is shown in operative association with certain elements connected to the saddle 10 to operatively associate the shaft with the horse during normal forward motion of a racing sulky, jog cart, or the like, not illustrated, but to which a pair of the shafts 14 are connected, as shown fragmentarily in FIG. 2, which respectively are disposed along opposite sides of the horse 12.

For purposes of completing the connection of the forward ends of the shafts 14 to the horse, especially for use during backing operations of a sulky or cart to which the horse is hitched, a shaft thimble 16 which embodies the principles of the present invention and the thimble strap 18 connected thereto, is connected in operative relationship between each side of saddle 10 and the tapered forward end of each shaft 14. The end of each thimble strap 18 is connected to a loop 20 on the saddle 10, preferably generally in the manner illustrated in FIG. 2. In said figure it will be seen that the loops 20 are also preferably formed from strap-like structure from which the thimble strap 18 and shaft thimble 16 of the present invention are formed, details of which are described hereinafter. The thimble straps 18 are threaded through said loops and extend reversely upon themselves for engagement by buckles 22 which are suitably connected to the 4 thimble straps 18 for one embodiment of longitudinal adjustment of the length of the thimble straps 18.

As best will be seen particularly from FIGS. 3-5, the tip portions 24 of the shafts 14 are somewhat tapered and the very terminal ends thereof are usually rounded as also shown in said figures. Such tapered arrangement is used advantageously in the structure of the shaft thimbles 16 comprising the principal element of the present invention. As clearly illustrated in detail in FIGS. 3-7, the thimble 16 preferably comprises at least a pair of open loops 26 and 28 which are integrally connected in end-toend arrangement, the loops 26 of each pair being outermost with respect to the loop 28 and the thimble strap 18 is connected integrally therewith and extends rearwardly from the thimble for attachment of the opposite end of the thimble strap 18 to the saddle 10.

The shaft thimbles 16 are formed very simply but effectively from a predetermined length of composite strap material preferably formed from a folded strip of textile fabric of predetermined width. Such fabric preferably is woven from thermoplastic filaments of suitable synthetic resin of which a number of types having high tensile strength are available. One well known one is sold under the name nylon. An exemplary configuration of such strap material formed from a suitable width of such textile fabric is illustrated somewhat diagrammatically and in slightly expanded manner in FIG. 8.

Referring to FIG. 8, said suitable width of a strip of such textile fabric is first folded upon itself to form the initial intermediate fold 30. The cut edges 32 of such strip of fabric are stitched together, and a row of stitching is formed along the initial fold 30. Said assembly of 2 plies then is folded midway of its width upon itself to form a secondary fold 34, which is stitched longitudinally and the overlapping initial fold 30 and cut edges 32 also are stitched together longitudinally. These two stitched opposite edges of what now comprises 4 plies of fabric respectively are folded upon the intermediate portion of the assembly until they substantially meet midway of the width of such 4-ply assembly, thereby forming a pair of rounded opposite edges 36 and 38 which respectively are stitched longitudinally to stabilize such folds. Lastly, these rounded opposite edges 36 and 38 are disposed in overlying adjacent relationship by folding the laminated assembly, which now comprises 8 plies of fabric, midway of its width to form a rounded outermost edge 40 which is opposite the pair of overlying rounded opposite edges 36 and 38.

The foregoing results in a multiple-ply composite strap arrangement of 16 plies of the initial fabric and such assembly is stabilized preferably by pairs of one or more rows of stitches 42 and 44 respectively adjacent opposite edges of said composite strap member. Generally, one or more adjacent rows of stitches are formed longitudinally along the composite strap intermediately of the opposite edges thereof, particularly if the strap is of the order of /1 inch or greater in width.

A completed, exemplary strap formed as illustrated in FIG. 8 and as described above will have a thickness of substantially 4; inch and the tensile strength of a laminated fabric strap of this type is many times greater than the tensile strength of a leather strap of similar width and thickness, notwithstanding the fact that said leather strap is formed of the finest available grades of saddle leather. In addition, one of the primary attributes of a laminated textile strap of the type described above resides in its exceptional lightness which, in comparison with leather, weighs only approximately /4 as much as leather, width and thickness of the two being similar.

The formation of the shaft thimble 16 from such above-described laminated strap material is achieved very simply and inexpensively. By selecting a predetermined distance inward from the terminal extremity 46 of a selected length of strap material of such type and crossing the end portion over the strap, the outermost loop 26 is formed having a predetermined circumference. The overlying end portion and intermediate portion of the strap are fixedly secured together by connecting means such as a suitable pattern of stitching 48 to complete the outermost loop 26. Following this, the' terminal end 46 of the strap then is disposed in overlapping relationship With another intermediate portion of the strap at a location suitable to provide the desired circumference of the second loop 28 and is secured thereto by additional fastening means such as another pattern of stitching 50, thereby completing the second loop 28 which, in conjunction with the outer loop 26, comprises the preferred embodiment of open loop-type shaft symbols 16.

The portion of the strap material which extends beyond the second loop 28 comprises the thimble strap 18 and is of a predetermined length that is adequate to serve for use both in conjunction with a jog cart, for example, in which relatively long thimble straps are required, or the effective length of said thimble strap 18 may be shortened, in use, such as with a racing sulky, by spirally Winding the thimble strap 18 a suitable number of convolutions around the outer end portion of the shaft 14, somewhat in the manner as illustrated in FIG. 7. This consumes an appropriate amount of length of the thimble strap 18 to shorten it until the effective desired length of thimble strap 18 for use with such sulky is produced, taking into consideration the amount at the opposite end of said strap which is required to be threaded through the loops 20 of the saddle for example and connected by buckles 22.

To achieve such connection to the buckles, said opposite end of the thimble strap 18 is provided with simple but effective adjustable connecting means preferably in the form of a series of spaced holes 52 which may be formed in the strap, especially when formed of thermoplastic material, by inserting a heated, pointed instrument through the strap intermediately of the side edges thereof so as to form the holes 52 by fusion and thereby unite any severed filaments of the woven fabric from which the strap is formed. Such fusion additionally stabilizes the shape and size of the holes 52 so that the same may be used for long periods of time without disruption or weakening of the strap.

Particularly as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, it will be seen that the adjoining pair of loops 26 and 28 are 8-shaped as viewed from one side of the shaft thimble 16 which they comprise. Preferably the outer loop 26 is slightly shorter in circumference than the loop 28, thus better adapting the shaft thim-ble to the tapered outer end of a shaft 14. When receiving such a shaft, by reference to FIG. 4 in particular, it Will be seeen that the loops 26 and 28 respectively are disposed within planes arranged at an acute angle to the longitudinal axis of the shaft 14 as indicated by the diagrammatic angles A and A which angles also extend in opposite directions with respect to the axis of the shaft 14. Still further, from FIG. 4, it will be seen that loops 26 and 28 are both offset laterally from the plane of the thimble strap 18 when said strap and the shaft thimble 16 are' in use and particularly when the strap 18 is placed under tension as when the cart or sulky is being backed rearwardly by the horse connected thereto.

The angular arrangement of the loops 26 and 28 With respect to each other, as can be best appreciated from FIGS. 3-7, will result in effective frictional gripping occurring between the loops 26 and 28 and the tapered outer end of the shaft 14 to which the shaft thimble 16 comprising said loops is connected. As increased tension is applied to the thimble strap 18, it can be visualized especially from FIGS. 3 and 4, that the angle between the planes within which the loops are disposed will tend to be increased and thus result in even greater frictional engagement of the loops 26 and 28 with the outer end portion of the shaft 14.

Such frictional engagement of the shaft thirnble 16 with the tapered outer end portions of the shaft 14 provides additional efiicient utilization when it is desired to shorten the effective length of the thimble strap 18 such as by spirally curling the strap 18 around the outer end portion of the shaft 14 as shown in exemplary manner in FIG. 7. For example, by loosening the gripping effect of the loops 26 and 28 upon the tapered outer end of the shaft and rotating said loops comprising the thimble 16 about the axis of the shaft, the desired number of convolutions of the thimble strap 18 may readily be formed and when the desired shortening of said strap has been effected, the spirally wound convolutions of the strap 18 may be manually worked backwardly along the shaft to again place the loops 26 and 28 under sufficient tension to effect desired frictional engagement thereof with the tapered outer end of the shaft.

From FIG. 1, it will be seen that the thimble strap 18 is disposed with its axis at an acute angle with respect to the longitudinal axis of the shaft 14, while the axis of the thimble 16 is coincident with that of the shaft 14. To achieve this desired angular relationship between the axis of the shaft thimble 16 and the strap 18, by reference to FIG. 5, it Will be seen that when the loops 26-and 28 are formed with respect to the thimble strap 18 in the manner described hereinabove and especially as illustrated in FIG. 5, the axis of the strap 18 will be arranged at an obtuse angle with respect to the axis of the thimble 16 as well as the shaft 14, as exemplified by the angle A shown in FIG. 5, due to the right-angled position of the terminal end 46 of the strap relative to the thimble strap 18 to which it is connected.

Particularly by reference to FIGS. 2-4, it will be seen that in the preferred construction of a set of shaft thimbles and straps, they respectively will be formed to comprise right-hand and left-hand thimbles and straps. The distinction can be appreciated particularly by reference to FIGS. 3 and 4 in detail, and in general, by reference to FIG. 2. Such arrangement primarily is for purposes of disposing the thimble straps 18 so as to at least partially extend along the inner surfaces of the shafts 14 respectively on opposite sides of the horse 12.

What is claimed is:

1. A shaft thimble and strap for racing harness comprising a fiat flexible strap of tensile material formed at one end into an open loop thimble arranged to encircle a shaft adjacent the outer end thereof at an acute angle to the longitudinal axis of the shaft, said loop thimble and strap comprising a plurality of open loops adjacent each other and respectively within planes extending at acute angles in opposite directions relative to the longitudinal axis of said strap when said thimble and strap are in use upon a shaft, said strap being crossed upon itself intermediately of said plurality of loops to form an 8-shaped arrangement of open loops and said crossed portions being fixedly secured together to define adjacent ends of said loops and said open loop thimble frictionally gripping said shaft when tensile stress is exerted upon said strap in a direction away from said and means adjacent the opposite end of said strap connectable adjustably to a saddle of a set of harness.

2. The shaft thimble and strap according to claim 1 in which the terminal extremity of said one end of strap is secured to said strap adjacent the end of said loop from which said strap extends toward said saddle when in use.

3. The shaft thimble and strap according to claim 2 in which said terminal extremity of said one end of said strap overlaps and extends substantially at a right angle to the portion of said strap to which it is secured.

4. The shaft thimble and strap according to claim 1 in which the axis of said 8-shaped thimble of open loops extends substantially at an obtuse angle to the axis of said strap when connected to said harness saddle in use.

5. The shaft thimble and strap according to claim 1 in which said S-shaped thimble of open loops is laterally offset from the plane of said strap when said thimble is con- 7 nected to a shaft and said strap is connected to a saddle m use.

6. The shaft thimble and strap according to claim 1 in which the strap and thimble shaped therefrom are formed from a strip of textile fabric folded transversely upon itself a plurality of times to form a multiplicity of plies, said plies being stitched longitudinally to form a composite strap and the cut edges of said strip of fabric being positioned interiorly of said composite folded strap, whereby said strap has rounded opposite edges, said one end of said strap being looped and crossed upon itself and the terminal extremity of said strap being fixed to said strap intermediately of the ends thereof to form said plurality of adjacent loops which comprise said 8-shaped thimble configuration of a plurality of loops.

7. The shaft thimble and strap according to claim 6 in which said plurality of loops comprising said thimble are offset laterally from the plane of said strap when said strap is connected in use to the saddle of a set of harness.

8. The shaft thimble and strap according to claim 6 in which said terminal extremity of said strap extends substantially at a right angle to said strap where it is connected thereto, thereby to dispose said thimble substantially at an obtuse angle to the axis of said strap when connected in use to the saddle of a set of harness.

9. The shaft thimble and strap according to claim 6 in which said outermost loop is of smaller circumference than the other in said thimble arrangement, thereby to adapt said thimble complementarily to the tapered outer end portion of a shaft.

10. The shaft thimble and strap according to claim 6 in which said textile material from which said strap is formed is Woven from thermoplastic filaments, and said connecting means on said opposite end of said strap comprising a series of spaced holes fused through the plies of said strap to stabilize said holes and prevent raveling of said filaments, said holes being arranged to receive selectively the tongue of a buckle on the saddle of a set of harness.

11. The shaft thimble and strap according to claim 6 in which the plies of said material from which said strap is formed are stitched longitudinally with a plurality of parallel rows of stitches to render the plies of said strap unitary.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 527,344 10/1894 Ortega 54-2 557,432 3/1896 Schindel 542 3,270,488 9/1966 Beach 54-39 HUGH R. CHAMBLEE, Primary Examiner.

US. Cl. X.R. 

